Night Mother
by Kira Kyuu
Summary: Well, she went and did it again. On a different world beyond the Veil, Briar Artemis Potter-Lupin-Black is glad she's away from the traitorous Wizarding World, but still misses her friends. Then she meets a young man called Daniel Jackson. . . HIATUS - UNDERGOING REVISIONS
1. Introduction

Disclaimer: Not mine

**Chapter One ~ **_**Night Mother**_

"We are the Untouched," one of the people in white said. "Whaddya mean, 'Untouched'?" Colonel O'Neill asked.

"All of the Touched have been tainted by the Night Goddess' touch. She began showing herself two and three-quarters years ago. Most Touched stay in an encampment built by the Night Mother, which we are thankful for. But, some of them are renegade, I suppose, and are mad, like crazed animals. Those ones still attack us, creating more and more Touched, some go to the Night mother, some do not. My daughter may be a Touched, as not everyone gets infected," the leader of the Untouched told them sadly.

"Has anyone come through the Gate?" Daniel asked curiously.

"It's not very often that we venture into the forest. If someone does come, they always come out to us though. As far as we know no one but you has," the Lord's wife answered, slightly confused.

"How could you be so uncaring?" Teal'c asked coldly.

"The moment they became Touched, they die! They are dead to us!" the Lord's wife hissed.

"When we returen, we expect you _gone_! You are to _never_ return here!" the Lord growled, marching out of the large chamber. Teal'c eyed the large guards thoughtfully, thinking perhaps one of _them_ could be . . . useful.

Daniel woke slowly. He noticed he was lying on a bed of furs, and two Touched stood nearby, watching him. The larger of the two sent the other out with a grunt and wave, his eyes never leaving Daniel. The other - number 2 - loped out of the roughly hewn cavern. The one left nudged a tear-drop shaped bowl over to Daniel indicating for him to take it.

_Looks like it was made for those with difficulty holding spoons or other eating utensils_, he mused to himself, cautiously taking a taste of the thick stew-like stuff. _Whoever made this sure knows how to cook!_

Shortly after he finished eating, #2 came back, closely followed by what seemed to be an Untouched woman.

_Why the hell is there an Untouched __**here**__ of all places?_ He examined her closely, trying to figure her out. Long, pitch-black hair, french braided and interwoven with spiked leather; long, dark gray trench coat, dark gray combat boots, capped with black steel on the heel and toe, black cargo pants, dark green muscle shirt, all with a strange scale-like texture to it. On her right hip was an amazing sword, a shamshir if he wasn't mistaken, with dark gray-black metal for the blade and the hilt was again wrapped in that strange scale-like material.

He could see two daggers strapped to her forearms. . . But what _really_ got his attention where the two black USP .45's strapped on her legs. He noticed the woman's eyes widen slightly as she took in his uniform and glasses.

"Holy hells! Are you from Earth, _please_ tell me your from Earth!" the woman (who looked to be about 17) pleaded.

Daniel, caught off guard, stared at her for a minute before mangaing to choke out a cautious, "Yeah... who are you?"

The woman flushed slightly, "Oh! Sorry! I'm Briar! Briar Potter-Lupin-Black! Just use any of my last names though I prefer to use just Briar Black! How'd ya get here anyway? Are there any others here? Could you go back? Your American, aren't you?" the woman pelted him with questions, almost bouncing in place.

Daniel blinked, "Uhmm. . . the Stargate, maybe, yes, and yes. Teal'c - a big man with a golden symbol on his forehead - was with me. We where going to get a blood sample from an Untouched. . . but I was dragged here, after trying to help that woman." Briar frowned slightly, her blue and amber flecked green eyes darkening.

"Some of your friends got infected?" she inquired softly, "If you can take me back I could help them keep their minds while your people work out the disease. I'm not wrong to assume that you _do_ have people working on a cure, am I?"

"No, your not wrong. How long have you lived with the Touched?" Daniel asked, an idea wriggling in the depths of his mind.

"Almost three years now. May I ask why?" He chuckled wryly, "The Untouched warned us of you, 'Night Mother.' Well, why don't we go on through the Stargate and -" Briar interrupted him,"What exactly is this 'Stargate' anyway? You've mentioned it twice now."

"Oh. . . It's that big metal ring-portal. How'd you get here if not through the Gate?" Briar blinked sheepishly, "The Death Veil. . . It's a device of supposedly arcane nature with no way back through it. My godfather was also pushed through, but three years previous to me. Shouldn't we be leaving now?"

"Er- yeah, Miss Black. Your Touched won't hurt anyone while your gone, will they?" Daniel asked apprehensively, unsure if she would take offense or not.

"Oh! No, they won't, as long as I'm back once every. . . 30-ish hours, to renew their. . . my control on them." _That_ made Daniel pause, "Er. . . I'm sorry, but can you show me your stomach?" Briar gave him a funny look, but pulled up her shirt to reveal a flawless, toned stomach. Well, it _would_ have been flawless, minus the whip-like scars just showing over her sides and hips.

"Done?" Her question brought him out of his thoughts with a light blush.

"Yes, sorry, you can put your shirt down now. I had to make sure you weren't a Goa'uld. We better get a move on, then. Just how long have I been out anyway?" he asked as she gave him a hand up.

"Three hours. Lucky you have that immunity, though it's been dwindling. Oi! Tog! I need to leave for a bit! You're in charge as usual!" the supposed Night Mother called to an aged Touched. 'Tog' frowned slightly, gesturing to two other Touched and pointing to her. Briar sighed, "Alright, alright! Jer, Zin, come along. I didn't catch your name, Mr. - ?" Daniel started slightly.

"I hadn't given it, sorry. I'm Dr. Daniel Jackson, archaeologist. It's a pleasure to meet you, even considering the circumstances, Miss Black," he said meaning to shake her hand. Briar shook her head subtly, "To touch a woman in public is to claim her, Doc. Even though they have half their minds, they still consider it a claim," she murmured quietly nodding slightly to the two distorted humanoids behind them. Daniel nodded thoughtfully, leading them to the Stargate.

Doctor McKenzie had _almost_ pinpointed the cause of the disease when the alarm blared, telling of an unscheduled, but authorized, off-world activation. Teal'c, who had been hovering around her lab, rushed out of the lab. She rebusied herself with the testing.

Briar stumbled, rolling down the hard metal ramp to the feet of a soldier rather gracefully, if she said so herself. Didn't mean it hadn't hurt, though. The soldier had his rifle pointed at her, so she held up her hands, eying the weapon warily.

"I . . . come in peace?" The soldier suppressed a snort, flashing her a quick grin, but still held the weapon on her. Jer and Zin where snarling at the five men who held their fire-arms on her.

"Er... She's with me, as are the two Touched," Daniel said, eying the soldiers as well.

"I came to help control the Touched. I'm immune, like Dr. Jackson is. . ." Again, the soldier above her flashed a grin, lowering his weapon and sticking his hand out, "Thanks for comin' then, ma'am. We could really use your help." Briar nodded, smiling slightly.

"Let's go, Teal'c should be with - " Daniel started only to be cut off. "Daniel Jackson. You where kidnapped. Who is she?" the afore-mentioned man asked. "I'm Briar Black. . . You _do_ realise you have a serpent in your stomach, right? I hope it isn't something bad. . ." Briar said, trailing off as snickers errupted around her.

"I am a Jaffa. We all have 'serpents in' our stomachs, Miss Black," Teal'c stated plainly. Briar nodded as if it made perfect sense.

"How are you able to control the Touched?" Teal'c questioned.

"I'm the Night Mother," She said, as if it explained everything. . . which it did, but didn't. "Yet you are. . .?"

"Human? Yeah. From Earth? Yes," glaring at any who dared to disbelieve her. She turned back to Daniel, "We should probably start with the commanding officer here, then move on to the most violent." Both Teal'c and Daniel nodded, leading her to the isolation cells.

Teal'c lead them to a cell, telling Briar who was inside, a Colonel Jack O'Neill and a General Hammond. Briar told the two soldiers out side of it to open the door. They hesitated, so Briar snapped at them, "Open it. _Today_, if you please."

_Who the seven hells is __**pulling**__ me?_ she thought to herself. The door slid open, causing the two inside to wake up, and charge at her. She released a wave of power, probably a bit more than needed, as the Touched around the cell she was in quieted also.

"Hello, sirs. I regret to inform you you ain't completely cured, so you can't speak as of yet. Colonel O'Neill, I'm presuming you where with the advance team?" The one to her left nodded cautiously.

"I'm Briar Black, the 'Night Mother' of the Touched. I had learned how to give back part of the minds of the Touched by complete accident. Let's continue on, sirs, at a later time. I need to help the other infected."

The two half-Touched looked at each other, shrugged, and followed her out calmly, a stark contrast to ten minutes ago.

Two hours passed, and all of the half-Touched under Cheyenne Mountain where in the Gate room, the only room large enough to hold all of them, ready to be completely cured.

"So you shouldn't need the full dosage," Briar was saying to the chief medical officer, Doctor Janet Fraiser. "So you're saying you only half-cured them? I didn't know such a thing is possible," the older woman replied, confusion obvious.

"I only half-cured them by accident, Doctor Fraiser. Now, I believe they are anxious to be whole again," Briar corrected, a slight frown on her face.

"Miss Black, I'd like to thank you personally for both helping us and bringing Dr. Jackson back to us, safe and sound," General Hammond told her holding his hand out to her.

"It was no trouble, General Hammond, sir. As soon as we cure all of the Touched on Broca, I would have a favor to ask of you," Briar murmured before following SG-1 back through the gate.

"You where told _not_ to -" the enraged Lord started to say. "Excuse me, stupid-leader dude? Yeah, hi, we can cure the Touched," Briar said, grinning widely at his offended stare and Jack's snort behind her.

"See? You guys 'lost' Jer and Zin almost two years past, correct? Well, here they are all nice and cured-like. Don't you agree, Colonel?" "Yeah, don't worry, we'll teach you how to cure them if any more pop up," Jack said, smirking slightly at the shocked people.

"But. . . who is _she_? _She_ wasn't with you earlier. Was she a Touched?" the Lord's wife asked.

There was a tense silence before Briar chuckled lightly, saying, "I was Touched, but not completely infected. I'm from Colonel O'Neill's homeworld, sent here by accident nearly three years ago. You know me as the 'Night Mother.' _They_ know me as Briar Black. I helped the Touched keep their minds, I half-cured them. They will cure the rest in the Forest of Night. And, before you ask, no, I never infected anyone on purpose." Briar turned to Jack, ignoring the shocked Untouched.

"Can we go cure my Touched now, sir?" she asked, arching a scarred eyebrow at him. Jack flushed slightly before nodding, "Yeah, the sooner we can leave the sooner I can sleep."

The process of curing 'her' Touched was nearly as simple as curing those of the SGC. Funnily enough, Tog was the Lord's Father-In-Law, much to Briar and Jack's amusement. Only when the debriefing was over did she realize she had no where to stay.

She sighed, "General Hammond? Could I join Colonel O'Neill's team?" The General looked at her quizzically, "No offense Miss Black, but what could you possibly offer this facility?" Briar fidgeted slightly.

"I'm able to read, write, and speak many obscure dialects, and I know much of the supposed 'arcane' arts from around the world. I was an assassin and mercenary against many terrorists, so I am well-versed in espionage and guerrilla tactics. Please, consider my help. Think of what I already know of and less you'd have to divulge to uncertain people. Doctor Jackson already proved that I wasn't a Goa'uld, sir. If you need to run an identification and background check, my full name is Briar Artemis Potter-Lupin-Black, sir." Jack, who had been leaving the room, paused just outside of the door. There was a long pause before the General answered her.

"I'll have to confirm it with the President, Miss. You may stay here or with one of O'Neill's people until then. Good day, Miss Black." There was a small grunt of surprise, then a soft, hurried sentence that Jack almost didn't catch.

"Thank you thank you thank you! You won't regret this, sir!" _Judging by her attitude. . . I would say that Briar had hugged him. . . I'm curious as to why though,_ Jack mused to himself.

As Briar was leaving the debriefing room, Jack snatched her wrist. "Er- I have room, if you want. We don't have to come in for two more days and it gets boring here," Jack said, stuttering slightly. Briar beamed at him, "Thank you, Colonel. Military bases make me . . . edgy, over periods of time."


	2. The Commandments of the God

_**A/N: I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed. . . . but I would appreciate those who favorited or alerted my story to also review! It ain't that hard, just saying 'update please' or 'good job' and some constructive criticism would be nice!**_

**AN: Revised 15-05-12; De-Chunked, Some slightly big changes done. Got complaints about the 'rape' bit or at least implying it. =/**

Disclaimer: View previous chapter

**Chapter Two ~ **_**The Commandments of the God**_

"I don't get it! She assigned herself _all_ of my household chores, including cooking and outside chores! It's as if she's completely used to it, and it's _normal_!" Jack really couldn't understand why (or how) she would (or could) do _his_ chores for him.

"Maybe for her-" Daniel cut himself off, giving an apologetic and sheepish look over Jack's shoulder. The Colonel turned to see Briar standing next to Teal'c, both arching opposite eyebrows and leaning on opposite sides. _Yin and Yang,_ Jack thought wryly.

"My old guardians believed that nothing suited me better than cleaning their filth and cooking their food. I was to them as Humans are to Goa'uld, I suppose. Maybe a bit worse, as I was their blood-relative. Old habits die hard, Colonel. The ironic thing is that I'm a multi-billion dollar heiress," Briar smirked at Daniel and Jack's dumbfounded stares.

She turned to Teal'c, speaking hesitantly in a harsh tongue and bowed her head slightly.

"Teal'c's teaching you Goa'uld?" Daniel asked, his eyes wide in surprise.

"Correct. I know most of the Earth languages already. I seem to have a gift for languages, as most recently I have learned about twenty dialects in five months, maybe a bit less. I'm hoping Goa'uld won't take _too_ terribly long. And, if Teal'c doesn't mind, I would love to learn their writing system as well," Briar half-asked, glancing at the Jaffa for a confirmation or a refusal.

He nodded slightly, "I agree that you have a gift for languages. Goa'uld is notorious for its difficulty to learn, and so far you don't show much of an accent on the words." Briar flushed slightly at his praise.

Briar turned back to Jack, "So. . . SG-9 is missing? That may not be good. Knowing my luck, that Hansen went AWOL."

"Whaddya mean, Black?" the Colonel asked. Briar hid a flash of hurt at the way he addressed her silently wondering at the change.

"Well, he _was_ a black-op according to his profile. From my experience, the most unstable are those who have been in covert ops for a long amount of time, and Hansen was in for nearly five years. You add in factors of radiation, paranoia, and the general worship of us when we arrive on an alien planet. . . All of those factors could have splintered his mind gradually, for all we know! I just don't think we should be unprepared, considering what has happened in the past. If he has, I'll have to chop him up and feed him to my ph- pets."

Jack shrugged slightly, looking contemplatively at the Gate as the chevrons locked. _Why does it look like an underwater explosion? Why does it annoy me so much that she's hiding things from me? What animals begin with a 'ph' anyway? Fish?_ _What kind of fish eats meat? Piranhas?_ He felt a hand rest on his shoulder, and he looked around. Teal'c, Briar, and Sam had already left.

"Let her tell us on her own time, Colonel," Daniel advised quietly. Jack nodded, stepping through the portal, closely followed by Daniel. _I always find the difficult ones, don't I?_

Briar threw her arms up in frustration, stalking out of their campsite, muttering curse words in every language she knew. She couldn't save _one_ normal from only twenty normals! _One!_ She used to be able to save a full _town_ from fifty plus Death Munchers without any getting hurt or captured! Granted, _then_ she was able to use her powers almost freely. But that _shouldn't_ be a fucking excuse!

"_Gods damn Hansen to an eternity of torture!_" she hissed in Goa'uld.

"Briar?" a hesitant voice called from behind her. Briar flushed lightly as Jack came into view.

"Yes, s- . . . Jack?" she replied in a calm(ish) voice. He came to stand next to her, sighing slightly.

"It wasn't your fault, Briar. Don't blame yourself," he told her gruffly, "I'll leave you to think." the Colonel turned to leave.

"Jack?" He paused. "Why did you let me stay with you? I could've been a super-crazy psycho-person, for all you could've known." Jack sighed again, turning back and stopping in front of her.

"I -... I honestly don't know, Briar. There's just something about you. . . " Jack trailed off, reaching out his hand to trail his fingers over her face longingly. Someone was approaching, they both knew it. Briar hesitantly stepped closer to Jack, reciprocating the trail of fingers over his face. Daniel came into the clearing just after Briar stepped away.

Daniel froze, surprised at their closeness. "I'm. . . not interrupting, am I?" he asked cautiously.

"_Yeah,_ you are! Geez, Daniel, why'd you have to go and interrupt?" Briar exclaimed, mock-pouting. Daniel blinked uncomprehendingly, "Huh?"

Briar smiled, laughing lightly, "I was _kidding_, Daniel."

Only Jack seemed to notice that the smile didn't _quite_ reach her eyes, and that her laugh was just a little forced. "Oh! Right! Well. . . Teal'c found Hansen's base," Daniel informed them, giving a small grin when Briar's eyes visibly brightened a shade (or three).

"Jack? Can we scout, can't we?" The colonel nodded, "_Only_ scouting, for now, anyway. If we charge in, Lieutenant Conner may be killed before we could get to him." He saw Briar's eyes dim in remembered pain before she shut them.

_I hope she tells us soon. It's gettin' mighty annoying, all these secrets of hers,_ Jack thought to himself as he stuffed the questions that popped up into his box labeled 'Questions for Briar.'

"Dr. Carter. Stay." Sam turned to give Briar an 'are-you-fucking-kidding-me' glare, but was surprised when she realized Briar wasn't there.

Then she heard Frakes shout of pain, and turned back to the campsite. The three (Sam, Daniel and Teal'c; Jack went off scouting earlier) where shocked to see Briar beating the living crap out of Frakes. The vile man managed to knock her down, straddling her waist and holding her hands above her head. He leaned forward to whisper to her, and, with surprising flexibility, Briar sunk her teeth into his throat.

"What the _hell_ is she doing?" Sam hissed to herself. "Humiliating him, I believe. She may not be able to overpower him, so she shows the others how weak he really is by showing that even though he has her held down, she can hurt him," Teal'c said, worry seeping into his voice as Briar was viciously punched by Frakes when he freed his throat.

"Where's Briar?" Jack asked, curious. Everyone cringed (well Teal'c didn't really cringe, just winced slightly), none of them wanting to tell the horrid news. "_Where_. . . _is . . . Briar?_" Jack snarled. Daniel hurriedly pointed at the encampment, a slightly panicked look in his eyes.

"One second she was here, the next, _poof_, she disappears! Frakes was beating on one of the civilians and she beat him, until he knocked her down! None of us saw her leave!" Jack watched Frakes bind Briar's hands and lead her into a set of caves, contemplating his options.

"I. . . suppose that's alright. This place has too many guards. It would be hard to get into the encampment and get to either Frakes or Hansen without a slaughter on our hands. I would've preferred that Briar wasn't the one to go down, though. . ." Jack finally admitted, regretting not coming back sooner. _Now she's stuck in there all alone. Stupid, stupid, stupid!_ he berated himself.

"So. . . Who might you be?" a salt-and-pepper haired man asked Briar as she was dumped at his feet.

"That depends," she hissed, spitting out a small chunk of flesh from that asshole, Frakes. "On?" the man - Hansen - asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Whether your Touched or not, of course!" she said as if he should have known it. "I'm not Touched. What is you name, pretty one? Why were you with O'Neill and his team?" Briar shrugged, "Untouched call me Night Mother, Jonas. I was the Goddess of the Touched. SG-1 brought me with them, Black God take them." Hansen started pacing, only pausing to examine her face. "No visible wounds. . . pretty, too. . . What do you say to being _my_ Goddess? I am the God to these people, and I will need a strong wife." Briar's eyes flashed a dark mercurial silver for a moment before returning to normal.

"Very well. I _suppose_ since my given name was Askr, you may use it," Briar stated snootily, willing the ropes to slice cleanly in half.

"You should know that if you beat something it will eventually bite back." Hansen waved off her warnings, "I'll treat them how I want to, Askr. _You_ are a Goddess, better than any mortal, yet still below a _God_. You will _not_ tell me what to do! Understand, _Goddess_?" Hansen's hand had wrapped around her throat mid-way through his little spiel, tightening when he ended.

"Yes, my lord. I understand," she whispered, faux-meek. _Maybe you'll get to kill him later. . . for the good of the Stargate and these people,_ Briar mused to herself. She wished Jack was here. Hansen yanked her over to a tarp-covered machine, "Can you work this?" he asked sharply. She didn't know what it was, but old energy rested under the proper symbols used to activate it, showing her which to push and when. "Possibly. Leave me to it, my l-" Hansen growled, shoving her up against the wall, lust evident in his eyes right next to anger and insanity.

"I am your _master_. You'd do well to remember it, dear Askr," Hansen breathed in her ear, causing her to shiver in disgust. He latched his mouth on her neck, fondling her. She whimpered as Frakes and Jack came in the room. _I- I need to be more careful . . . about what I wish for. . ._

Jack was shoved forward (once again) by Frakes, into a cave-room. A helpless whimper drew his attention to two forms, one Hansen, the other _his_ Briar, obviously not liking the 'attention' Hansen was giving her. Jack growled, while Frakes coughed to get Frakes' attention.

"Sir? I've brought the Colonel. What do you want me to do with him?" Hansen stopped his. . . ministrations, pulling Briar along with him as he skirted around some sort of alien doo-dad.

"Hello, O'Neill. Askr, introduce yourself _properly_ to the Colonel," Hansen ordered, yanking her forward. Briar stumbled, shooting Jack a pleading look, "Yes, _master_. I am the Night Mother Askr, Colonel O'Neill. Master? Do you think that this Human could help me with the device? Only for you to use all the faster, of course," Briar simpered, carefully maneuvering Hansen. _I never really was any good at subtly maneuvering people, but I hope this is well enough. . . _

He looked her over, obviously suspicious, "And _how_, Askr, do I know your not infatuated with him?" Briar paused briefly, an uncertain gleam in her eyes before she wrapped her arms around Hansen's neck.

"Do you think I would give up you, a God, for a _Human_?" she breathed seductively into Hansen's ear, despising what she did, even as she did it. "Of course you wouldn't. Survival of the fittest, my dear," Hansen chuckled before kissing Briar lustfully.

After Hansen and Frakes left, Briar led Jack over to the blasted device. "I'm sorry. It was all I could think of-" she started.

"The very _first_ thing you could think of was _seducing_ him? What the _fuck_, Briar?" he hissed quietly. _Are you seducing me too?_ he thought to himself. "He tried to _force _himself on me, Jack! He was horny so I fucking played on it! I don't want that . . . that _monster_ even near me, let alone _touching_ me! The only person I want touching me is - !" Briar cut her self off. She had only known him for two, almost three days. It would be creepy to love him so soon. "_Who_ is it you want, Briar?" Jack asked softly.

"Jack. . . I don't want to ruin anything in . . . the team. It would be hard to choose in combat, the team, or my love. You know - Fuck!" Briar hissed backing away to circle around the device, as far as she could from Jack without being too conspicuous.

Hansen stormed back in, closely followed by Frakes. "Are you able to activate it?" Hansen barked out, looking slightly disappointed for some reason.

"Yes, Master. Do you wish for me to do so?" Briar asked in a subservient tone. The rogue SG member nodded, "Activate it, Askr. Hopefully we can move it into position, provided, of course, if it works." Briar nodded again, pressing five buttons in quick succession, not hesitating. A dark orange glow flooded the cavern when she pressed a small symbol.

"It's _beautiful_! Thank you, Askr. It's too bad you are so. . . _connected_, with SG-1," Hansen murmured regretfully.

"What do you mean, Master?" He sighed, waving Frakes forward. The other man had three sets of restraints, she noticed, all the same colour and seemingly the same thing as what the Stargate was made of. A collar, two wrist manacles and two ankle manacles, all about six inches long and two an a half inches thick. The collar, Jack noticed, was only three inches wide, but was made to keep the chained person's head upright at an uncomfortable position.

"These will hold your. . . . _powers_, for me. I'm afraid I just can't _trust_ you anymore, my dear misguided Goddess," the insane Human tutted in a disappointed voice.

Briar pulled against the Naquadah chains connecting her thick collar and manacles together futilely. They where to strong to physically break, and just absorbed whatever magic she sent into them. She had listened to Hansen until he almost shoved Jack into the open Stargate, without putting any codes through.

An angry and terrified shriek tore itself from her throat as she _shoved_ as much energy and magic she could into the restraints, hoping to overload them. All she got was a wave of pain worse than the _Cruciatus_ permeating her slim build. She wasn't aware of the restraints separating into tiny molecules, of them sinking into her skin, of them fusing with her body. She was completely oblivious to the fighting going on around her. The natives shoved both Hansen and Frakes into the portal, once they had seen that the SG-1 could activate the UV shielding system. Teal'c stepped forward, picking Briar up and grunting at surprising lightness. _What happened to the metal?_ the Jaffa wondered in confusion.

"We need to leave, and find out what the _hell_ happened to her and those restraints she had on," Jack growled out, turning to the Gate.

"It sunk," one of the natives called out. "Sunk _where_?" Jack asked, a sinking feeling appearing in his gut.

"Into her skin. It looked very painful. Worse than being in the Sun for many days," the man said, frowning slightly in concern. "Thanks. Daniel, send the code through. Teal'c, did you know what kind of metal that was?" Jack asked quickly. Teal'c's head turned slowly to him.

"It. . . appeared to be Naquadah," again, though he hid it well, worry and dread seeped into the Jaffa's voice. Jack could almost her the 'dun dun duuuun' in the background.

When SG-1 had arrived at Command, they paused briefly, wondering who would tell the General, before Sam nodded in assent. The rest moved swiftly from the Gate room directly to the Infirmary.

"We need a doctor in here!" Jack bellowed, helping Teal'c remove Briar's trench coat and vast array of weaponry. _Jesus Christ! Four handguns, seven knives, two daggers, four grenades, a kilo of C-4, twenty feet of piano wire, and fifty throwing knives! I don't even think we got everything that she has on her, and she's a walking army as it is!_ Jack thought in wonder.

Doctor Fraiser rushed in demanding to know what had happened. Jack paused, unsure of how to say what had happened.

"About ten kilos of Naquadah was somehow absorbed into her, according to witnesses. We need to figure out where the hell that went." Doctor Fraiser nodded, motioning for Teal'c to move Briar over to a CAT-scan-like machine. "Hopefully this will tell us," Fraiser explained as she had Briar lain down in it. A 3-D image appeared on the computer screen a few minutes later. The scan appeared brighter then what would be normal, showing her veins, to a startling extent.

"How exactly did this happen, Colonel?" Jack shook his head, bewildered as much as the Doctor was, "I was don't have any idea, Doc. I was hoping _you_ could tell us that."

"Colonel? Just _what_ is going on here?" General Hammond asked sharply as he walked up from behind them. "General? All these scans show is that she ahs a higher-then normal metal presence in her body. I don't know what happened," Janet explained, slightly frustrated.

A full week. One day since SG-1 had gone to a desolate planet. . . Well, they _thought_ it was desolate. 'Jack' sat next to Briar, trying to heal her for the umpteenth time since he had arrived. A week since Briar fell into a Naquadah-induced coma. . . 19 hours after the coming through the Gate, 'Jack' felt a discharge of energy prepare to launch out. . but it got absorbed by the sleeping woman before him. The alarms blared. The _real_ Jack was returning.

Again 'Jack' felt a surge siphoned off by Briar. The real Jack didn't arrive until nearly two hours later. 'Jack' turned to Jack, confused and helpless, "Why won't she heal? I try and try, yet she won't! If I healed her, your pain would heal! She won't _wake_," 'Jack' murmured brokenly, ready to be struck down for hurting Jack.

"Is that why you came? To heal _my_ pain?" _Who __**was**__ that? I don't remember. . . darkness, power, pain, pain__pain__**pain**__! . . . . Fear. . . of what? No . . . For __**who**__? Terrified, screams . . . . my screams? Why did I hurt? Why can't I wake? Who am I? __**What**__ am I?_ **An energy manipulator**, a voice told her. _So soothing. . . who are you? What should I do?_

"Yes. I mended you physically. But you still hurt. I looked into your mind. . . and I was scared. A warrior, is what I saw." She felt another surge of power, stronger than the one that woke her. _I should wake, shouldn't I? Can you tell me who I am?_ **Briar. You are Briar. Help Lazarus or he an his won't survive. **She forced open her eyes, dark green and streaked with a dark silver, and pulled at the not-Jack, "Come, come, Lazarus! You and yours will die if you do not return!" She tugged both Jacks to the other energy being who was fading just as, if not faster, as not-Jack was. The dark blue crystal was pulsating slightly as she picked it up, hauling both it and the Jacks to the Gate room.

"Open the Gate to SG-1's last planet! Now! People are dying! They can't survive here! What harm would it do to let us go back?" she shouted at the Gate operator. He paused, but did as she asked.

Not-Jack fell with a muffled 'oompf' onto yellow sand. The other crystal-being in Briar's arms reappeared, "Thank you, for so much!" The crystal shifted her attention to not-Jack, seemingly listening to an unheard explanation.

"Could you release power? Enough to make twenty of us? Or to heal those broken, shattered, by the Goa'uld?" Briar nodded, releasing and eighth of her pent up power. _Twenty-five_ new crystals formed and every single one of the fifty broken where pieced back together. Jack stared, in awe of the power he felt pulsating around him, in the crystals and in Briar. She had set 'her' stone next to the not-Jack, both of their forms shifting into a dark-haired and hazel eyed man, and a red-haired, green eyed woman. The two smiled at Briar, "May we use their names, dear child?" the woman asked quietly.

Briar nodded once, then turned to Jack, "These are my. . . not-Parents, I suppose. Please, meet Lily and James Potter, Jack." The Colonel stared, gobsmacked. His jaw very nearly hit the ground will all of the other forms started shifting and Briar started to introduce some of them.

"Jack? These are Cedric, Cho, Percy, Zephius, Thom, Aberforth, Kingsley, Alastor, Sal, Ro, Ric, Helga, Gabriel, Ginny, Nicky, Joe, Shawnee, Aurora, Alexia, Anna, Emily, Taylor, Tyler, Collin, George, Beka, Alanna, Thomas, Po, Matt, Harry, Rose, and Eva. They were my friends, and my family. The last twenty were under fourteen when they died. Two were seventeen. One nineteen. The rest ranged from 38 to a hundred and twenty two years old. Sal, Ro, Ric, and Helga lived almost a thousand years ago. I will tell _you_ of who I am, and the importance of these people. I ask only that you tell no one until I tell them first." Jack nodded dumbly as Briar sat down next to him, in the shade of a dune.

"On Earth. . . there is a small group of people. They're . . . _relatively_ unknown by the world around them. This group can manipulate and sometimes create ambient energy from the Earth. They tend to be very. . . _prejudiced_, about those who can't, AKA 'muggles.' Along with these manipulators, are a large selection of plants, creatures, and beings who are hidden from the 'Outer World.' They fancy themselves witches and wizards. Each of these people," Briar gestured to the surrounding people sitting in a large circle around them, "Were part. . . magical, for lack of a better term. Anna, Harry, Po, Tyler, Zephius, Aberforth, Thomas, and Alexia couldn't fully utilize their abilities, earning themselves the name 'Squib,' or someone who can't use the energy that was born into a family that could. Aurora, Emily, George, Beka, and Alanna had their magic and _most_ of their ability to use it torn away. So, they turned to mundane ways to fight- guns, knives, swords, explosives, guerrilla warfare, you name it, they probably knew it like the back of their hand. A supposed 'light side' was against a 'dark side.' I was prophesied to bring down the 'dark lord' at the time, Tom Riddle.

"Tom was insane through the 'light' lord's manipulations. He only came out of it when I managed to . . . to kill him, and end his agonized existence. When I had first 'defeated' Tom at a year and a half - energy manipulators, remember? - the 'light' lord sent me to live with . . . abusive, relatives. Nine and a half years went by, then all of a sudden, _whoosh_, that bastard arrives, spouting off things about _magic_ and my parents. He set up yearly _tests_ - ones that involved possible death for me and/or others - to determine my uses and 'prepare' me for my role against Tom. A crazy teacher, a sixty foot snake that could kill you with her gaze, a hundred life-drainers, a dragon. . . oh, what _else_ was there? A sphinx, giant spiders, Crazy-Tom and his insane followers multiple times," Briar shrugged, sighing. _I can't believe I'm telling him this. . ._

"Dangerous things like those. Lucky, a genetic ability of mine is to speak to animals. My assumption was that many of the witches and wizards now-a-days are descendants of Humanoid creature/beings who could utilize ambient energy and mated with Humans. I think I'm a myriad of mostly Human and creature genes. . . For instance, I can have a single life-mate - which I find lucky, as otherwise I would get stuck with someone most likely extremely incompatible with me."

Jack sat there for fifteen minutes, trying to absorb what she had said. "Wow," he finally breathed, "Do you know _who_ your life-mate is?" he asked, trying to lighten the mood a bit. Briar nodded, blushing fiercely. "Really, now? Who is it?" he teased her, ignoring the pain that he knew stemmed from most likely not being her . . . mate. _How strange it is to think that_, he mused to himself. He just caught the pointed look Briar threw at him. Two and two clicked in his head, "Me?" A confirmation nod. In Jack's head, a little chibi-version of him was doing the happy-dance. "Awesome!" he chuckled lightly, slightly unsure as to how he should react. He finally settled on grinning like an idjit while flushing.

Briar and Jack sat on his sofa, a slightly awkward silence stretching between them. Briar groaned in frustration, "This is _exactly_ what I wanted to prevent!" Jack chuckled lightly, pulling a question out of the little 'box' he put his in, "How about I ask a few things? Like how you know you have this. . . 'creature' blood in you?" Briar got a wicked gleam in her eyes as a Cheshire-cat grin took over her face, "I'll show you. Wait here."

Jack did as told, weighing the pro's and con's of asking her to dinner.

Briar changed into a dark emerald sleeveless and backless tank top, khaki shorts, and let her hair down. She traced a black tattoo on her right shoulder, releasing her 'shadow glamours' (a special ability of her kind). She shuddered as a long fluffy feline tail and two ears grew from the base of her spine and from where her Human ears used to be. Large black and silver wings erupted from the long tribal wing tattoos on her back. Briar sighed in relief, _Damn do they itch when they're confined too long. . ._

Jack's jaw dropped and flushed heavily when Briar silently padded back into his sight, tail swishing behind her. _So cute!. . . Wonder if this means I'm a Furry. . . Could just be her. . ._ Jack thought to himself as he went to stand before her, eying her appreciatively.

"Wingspan? Are you able to take off? Are you exactly like a cat? I mean, do you not like water," he asked, curious. "Uhm. . . Sixteen or so feet, yes, and no," she shrugged lightly, an odd rolling of her shoulders instead of the straight up-down- of most people.

"How'd you get those scars?" "Which ones?" Jack frowned, "Forehead, right fore-arm, abs, lower back, left calf, right shoulder, both hips, and the two very close to your heart." Briar blushed faintly, "Hmm, how to put this... shoulder, forehead, and left hip are from the spell meant to kill me. Right shoulder is from a werewolf, left calf from a stray cutting curse. My right hip is from a rogue Vampyre. Right forearm is an immunity bite courtesy of the most poisonous snake alive. I think she's now in Lolo National Park. . . well, she was three years ago. The abdomen is from a Threstral... she helped me from a poisoned blade that had penetrated my heart, with the help from a Phoenix. The only reason I have them is because they're cursed, too old, or immunity and ally bites. Immunity and ally bites just mark me as a friend of said species, advance my particular abilities, and the immunity ones give me. . . well, immunity, to most every disease and poison that I know of." A few more minutes passed, and the two once again sat together, though noticeably closer than before.

"Any other powers?" Jack asked, chuckling slightly. "Yes. I can turn into almost every type of creature and Humanoid that I know of. I think it's my Valkyrie blood. My parents' families were descendants of the 'Guardians of the Asgard' or some such. Sirius and Remus - my godfathers- got to blood-adopt me, quite illegally, as Remus is a werewolf. And no, he didn't give me the scar. I'm thankful they took me away from my uncle who was- well, he was very abusive." Briar sighed heavily.

Jack stored away his newly acquired information and asked lightly, "Care for some Chinese? I know a great buffet!" Briar quirked her head to the side slightly, "Are you asking me out, Jack?" He chuckled, "Yes, little Briar, I am. Would you, Briar, care to join me, Jack, for a great Chinese dinner?" he teased her lightly.

Briar grinned widely, "Yes! Just let me hide my. . . 'unique' features. . . and grab my boots and coat!" Jack gave her a quick glance, "You _do_ know it's about seventy degrees (Fahrenheit) out there right?" "It's too warm! I'm stretching it as it is with my coat!" Briar whined playfully as she hid a few of her weapons expertly.

**End C-2 ~ **_**The Commandments of the God**_

_**A/N: Some of the spots where a bit touch and go, so it wasn't as smooth as I would've liked. Anyway! Next chapter has a surprise appearance from Briar's past! Who is it? And which of you can guess who it is? Again please give me a bit of a moral boost!**_

**AN: Yeah. Revised/Smoothed over as of 15-05-12**


	3. Oh my doG! Lumos!

_**A/N: Again, I love reviews! Sooo. . . yeah, please review. OH! And the chappy after this is nearly **_**twice**_** as long. . . it's the reason I haven't uploaded for a while. I like to stay two chapters ahead of what I upload. . . **_

**AN: Still not sure if I will continue this, but hopefully this revising will get it back into an interest category for me.**

**Chapter Three ~ **_**Oh my doG! Lumos!**_

Damn it! She was _this_ close to being able to use the Naquadah as an offensive (and possibly defensive) weapon! As Briar was muttering about the general stupidity of particulars, Daniel walked up to her, "Ready to go, Briar?"

"Huh? Oh! Yeah, sorry. I was. . . thinking, that this mission feels a bit more. . . I don't know. . . _important_ for some reason. More than _just_ the invisible creature, I mean." In the four missions since the Lazarus, the entirety of SG-1 and SGC had learned of, and trusted, Briar's sixth sense on things. In fact after this mission, she planned to tell at least SG-1 and General Hammond about her heritage and about the Wizarding World. She shot a quick glance at Jack for reassurance before stepping through the event horizon.

They investigated the surrounding forest after the Gate had disappeared. Briar could still _feel_ it, but it was here-not-here, probably meaning someone placed it in a pocket dimension or something very similar. Which meant that it was most likely that this place was the origin of 'Magic' and of wizards and witches. Briar mentally shrugged, it was highly unlikely that was true, though.

Jack had the team split up – Teal'c with Sam, Jack with Daniel, and let Briar go off by herself, knowing she would probably work better by herself – at least for now. After a relatively short time of trekking through the forest, Briar saw a red beam shoot at a large blurry object. She shifted through her 'tags' on her teammates. . . Teal'c was south-west of that beam. . . so it was possibly hostile Jaffa, maybe even Goa'uld.

Briar shifted into her fastest, fully trained non-phoenix form – a winged Nundu. She darted off, towards that beam of light. By the time she was within fifty meters of the origin point, she heard shouts, yelps, and the striking of flesh with metal.

The edge of the clearing gave her a full view of what was happening – four men stood circled around a large shaggy black dog, one gold armored, three silver armored. One of the Jaffa was looking around, so Briar presumed he was the one that shot at the disillusioned monstrosity. She charged out of the forest knocking over one of the Jaffa and snapping at the Goa'uld at she crouched over her friend, yowling in warning.

Apophis tilted his head to the side, eying the winged creature before him curiously. Its silver-green eyes sparkled with uncanny intelligence and warning. It also had quite a bit of charged Naquadah _inside _of it, if he wasn't mistaken ( and he _never_ was). Kill or capture, kill or capture, kill or capture. . . Kill is more fun. . . **"****Kill it****,"** he ordered his guards. The creature hissed at him commandingly, and he quailed, **"****Cease! Don't kill it – her!****"** One of his guards had already fired, though he missed, and the Creature hissed at him, letting a sickly purple tendril shoot out from between her canines, striking the guard in his throat.

Apophis' eyes widened in fascination as his strongest (but also dumbest) Jaffa's dark skin paled, and erupted with black blemishes, boils and painful sores. Within five minutes the Jaffa was dead, by _disease_. Apophis figured it was safe to assume that the smaller creature was a friend of the bigger one.

His confidence dropped, **"****What – **_**who, **_**are you?**" but he was still arrogant. "_Wouldn't you __**love**__ to know. Stupid Goa'uld,_" the Creature hissed at him. Apophis picked up the fallen Jaffa's weapon, his eyes conveying to the remaining Jaffa what he wished to do.

**"You are**** obviously strong. Why not be my pet? You and your. . . **_**friend**_**, would be treated better than any other Jaffa or Goa'uld in my care,****"** he offered. It was quite generous in his mind. The Creature choked out a snort, "_I'm __**more**__ powerful than you are, in terms of raw power. Even you can feel it, __**can't**__ you? And, as __**lovely**__ as that sounds, I'll have to decline. Leave us, Goa'uld!_" Apophis 'tch'ed, swiping the butt of the staff at the Creature as both Jaffa shot at her. His staff cracked on her nose, but the two shots where stopped by a silvery barrier. His eyes widened marginally, possessiveness glinting in them.

**"****Such a **_**lovely**_** creature. . .****"** he purred, blocking the strike the animal made at him. A shout and a burning pain made him pause before he struck her again. . ._ Humans_! He spun his staff, aiming it at the distracted creature, shooting her in the side and causing her to collapse on the smaller creature.

Jack had seen the creature leap out of the forest and knew it was Briar, meaning that the dog may be one of her friends. _What did she call them? Marauders? The only Marauder I know of that has black shaggy fur is that Sirius guy. . ._ he mused to himself.

"_Colonel,_ _it is speaking _directly_ to the Goa'uld inside of Apophis_," Teal'c radioed to him, unease evident in his voice. "_Don't__ worry about it, Teal'c.__ I__ know who it is. __She'll__ tell us when she can_," Jack whispered into his radio, eyes glued on the fight.

When Apophis attacked Briar, Jack panicked, aiming his rifle and shooting Apophis in the shoulder, shouting to hopefully distract the Goa'uld from _his_ Briar. Jack thought it had worked until Apophis turned back to her, shooting her. He stood, firing wildly at Apophis in anger and fear, wanting – needing – Briar to be alive, as unlikely as it was. He never saw the Jaffa that took him down. Nor did he see everyone else but Teal'c get taken down. One by one, after Teal'c refused Apophis' offer, the Humans, one of the remaining Jaffa, and the Animangi, wavered out of existence.

Briar woke with a start, feeling oddly content. She noticed two forms intertwined with her Nundu-form, one a great bear-like dog, the other Jack. Jack's face was buried in her neck, his arms wrapped about her shoulders (well, as far as he could reach) and his body pressed against her great furry-body. A ten foot long winged cat _did _generate a lot of warmth. She felt no pain, smelled no blood, roasted flesh, singed fur or feather. They _**(A/N: The dog and Briar!)**_ were healed.

Jack woke slowly, a comfortable thrumming against his face and body willing him to go back to sleep. _Briar!_ His eyes shot open, only to see a great black-furred head looking down at him in curiosity. He yelped, tumbling off the bed which he and the great beast where laying on.

_Jesus fuckin' Christ! She's HUGE!_ he thought to himself incredulously. Jack's yelp and resulting tumble brought Teal'c, Sam, and Daniel to come running in, and caused the dog on the other side of Briar to twitch before falling back asleep.

"Jack? What's wrong?" Daniel asked blearily, just before spotting the _very_ big cat that Jack was staring at. "Holy hell!" Daniel yelped, darting around behind Jack.

"Huh? What's going on in here?" a very sleepy Sam asked as she came into Jack's 'room'. Briar merely snorted, jumping of the bed and nuzzling Jack gently as she passed him and on out the door. "Did that _thing_ just nuzzle you?" Daniel asked incredulously.

"Er. . . Well, I wouldn't exactly call her a 'thing'. She has a _bit_ of a temper. And yes, yes she did. I don't know exactly why, though," Jack explained, accepting Daniel's hand as the latter helped him up. "Let's follow your friend," Daniel said, clapping Jack on his shoulder, "Maybe Teal'c is out there."

Briar sat next to Lya and Nefreya, purring happily as they stroked her fur. She actually forgot she was even a 'Human' until the team started discussing and speculating where she was. The witch let out a snort-laugh, causing most of the surrounding people to turn and look at her in confusion.

"Hey, kitty-kitty, d'ya know where our friend is?" Sam asked in a baby-voice, making Briar twitch in irritation, giving Jack a pleading look.

"Oh, no! No no no no! You ain't gonna get me to let you have the easy way out on this one! _You_ explain it!" Jack exclaimed, eyes wide and hands up defensively. Briar gave him a rumbling growl and a glare before shifting into her full-Human form, "But I don't wanna! They'll just get confused and weirded out!" she complained, earning shocked stares from everyone (minus Jack) present. Even the Nox had no clue that she was a Human, and _they_ had treated her.

Jack merely raised an eyebrow, so Briar ended up reiterating the story she had told Jack, including the bits about the Death Veil, Animangi, Sirius, and Tom still being alive – along with the old coot Dumbledore, unfortunately. At least they where three years ago. Even the Nox where shell-shocked by the end of the telling.

"So. . . let me get this straight, that 'dog' you saved is this. . . Sirius Black man, who blood adopted you, _magically_, with another man? At first this just seemed like a _really_ bad story or something, but after seeing a ten foot long, five foot high _**(A/N: um, 10 ft not including the tail! 5 ft at the shoulder; wingspan, maybe twenty or twenty five feet.)**_ black leopard with wings and the ability to utilize _disease_, of all things, against Jaffa, morph into our Briar . . ." Daniel shrugged, trailing off.

"Only you, Shadow, could get such a story. And I do thank you for rescuing me from the gold-twat and his handy-dandy little snakes. Think your friends could use me?" a hoarse voice from behind them asked.

"Sirius!" Briar screeched, tackling him, laughing happily. "'Ello, little – not so little anymore. . . - Briar! Gods, Remus and I where so bloody worried! Not to mention after I fell through that gods damned Death Veil. We didn't know if you knew about the old bastard's manipulations," the slightly gaunt man squeezed his heir gently, but tightly, "How old are ya now? How many birthdays has your dear dog-father missed?"

Briar flushed at his usage of 'dog-father' but answered, "I actually don't know. Jack?" She twisted around to look at him.

"On Earth. . . it's July. July 13, 2002," he elaborated, belatedly remembering that she was on a different planet for quite some time. "Er. . . Wow. . . Oh! Hey! I can legally drink in two and a half weeks! Sweet!" Briar crowed, unable to find anything else to really say about missing so much time. "Anyway, five birthdays, Padfoot, nearly six. But no birthday presents! I found you, and I have Jack! I have all of SGC, too!" she continued, grinning happily.

Jack flushed lightly when everyone (the Earth-born, anyway) turned to him. "What? Why is everyone staring at me?" he finally asked, still flushing. "What separates him from the rest of SGC, Briar?" Sam asked, giving said woman a calculating look.

"He let me stay with him, of course! Granted, I think any of you would've done the same, if given the chance. _Speaking_ of which, why isn't Teal'c staying with one of you guys?" Briar chirped brightly, a _completely_ innocent expression on her face. Surprisingly, it was Teal'c who answered her, "I do not believe I am ready as of yet. Even if I was, I doubt your government would allow me to do so as it has not been too long since I switched sides."

Briar abruptly felt a 'yank' on her weapons' shields. Her head whipped around to an old male Nox, who seemed quite shocked. "Look, old man, don't even _try _to take my weapons again! I will not warn you a second time!" Briar snarled, "I do _not_ care if you're a pacifist, it's no excuse to steal the weapons I use to _protect_ my family and friends! If you take them, they end up hurt! Places are dangerous, and not everyone can hide like you can!"

The old Nox frowned, but nodded in partial understanding, "Come, miss. We have much to talk of." Daniel and Jack made to follow the two. "No. Only the Miss. Maybe you could. . . learn, from her when we send you home," the old man said sternly.

"I am called Briar Black. Why did you wish to speak with me?" Briar asked, eying him warily. The old man continued walking, deep in thought.

"My name is Jeol. I asked for only you because. . . you appear to be part of my people. You are part Nox. Nox, you see, are able to utilize energy and tend to be pacifists. There is another race, Alterran, who could utilize a different form of energy manipulation. Yet another, Furling, could shape-shift, typically into large humanoid furry forms. Another, the Asgard, were extremely well known for their protectiveness, defense, and attacking capabilities. Their adapting and healing rates were also off the charts – compared to other races, that is. You may, or may not, have blood from each of these Races. You also have Naquadah in your blood, so some may mistake you for a Goa'uld," Jeol shrugged.

"So. . . I was correct in my guesswork. Could you tell me more of your culture?" Briar asked, leading them into a conversation that would last hours as they tried to explain the bases of Natural Nox and Human culture to each other. Daniel, Sam, and Teal'c had gone at separate times to check on them, only to walk away dazed at the quick talk being exchanged between Briar and Jeol, too fast for anyone else to fully comprehend.

Then Nefreya had disappeared, nearly six hours after Jeol and Briar's conversations started. Briar searched – and found – the young Nox girl laying near a log, unmoving. The witch (What exactly _was_ she anyway?) picked her up, speeding towards the little village, muttering obscenities at whoever hurt the – somewhat – innocent child.

Briar scowled, moving as fast as she possibly could, knowing the difficulties of bringing back a recently-dead person – beyond three hours was too late, and Gods know how long little Nefreya had been dead. Briar knew from experience that the Avada Kedavra was permanent – the death of Colin Creevey attested to that. She would heal/revive the kid herself but the Goa'uld was still watching and she could get back to the Nox fast enough.

Jeol, Lya, and Lya's husband, Soa, thanked her.

"Jeol?" The elder turned to Briar. "If – when – the Goa'uld come, may we defend ourselves? With lethal force, if they attempt to stop the Ritual?" Jeol hesitated, knowing she only meant to help. "Only non-lethal, please. You know our views. It is a stretch to allow you to even harm them. Thank you, though. I – _we_ – may not approve of your methods . . . but it is the thought that counts, correct? Your friends may have their weapons back." Briar thanked him profusely, moving back to 'her' team. Their weapons shimmered into existence next to Jack, who had yet to notice.

Briar scooped up Teal'c's staff, "They'll let us defend them, provided I alter you weapons to include a 'stun' setting. It was the only way we'd get them back at all," Briar continued, overriding any protests from the team – mainly from Jack and Sam, "Your weapons will have switches, 'stun' and 'damage.' The first will release a burst of energy to knock out a rhino, the second doing it's typical damage. And I will only do this for _this_ team and the Gate's guards."

She sat cross-legged next to the pile of weapons, concentrating on altering the weapon she had in her hand. In the Human-made weapons she placed a battery of Naquadah and hooked a line from the switch, battery, and the muzzle, so it would shoot 'bullets' of energy.

The woman had a _lot_ more Naquadah than anyone had guessed, but was still thankful that the staff-weapon didn't need anymore Naquadah. Jack still sulked at not being able to kill Apophis, but she'd sooth his ego and problems later; for now they had to protect the Nox.

Just as Briar finished modifying the last weapon, the alarms she had set up triggered.

"Time to go! I need to go as the Nundu to draw Apophis away. Go!" Briar ordered them as she tossed the rifle to Sam, and ran towards the disturbance, shifting mid-leap. She prowled through the foliage, contemplating what she was going to say to that bastard.

**"Little one! What a . . . **_**surprise.**_**"** Speak of the devil . . . Briar turned her furred head towards Apophis, _"Could you __**leave**__? I need those . . .__** humans**__,"_ here she forced herself to spit out 'humans' in a disgusted manner, _"To take me to a lush untouched world they call Pandora. There's nothing they want in return. . . except me getting __**you**__ away so they may flee, like the little rodents they are. And don't call __**me**__ little."_ Apophis 'tch'ed in annoyance, **"I need the natives. According to Rey'auc they posses uni-"**

Briar snorted, interrupting him, _"I __**gave**__ them those so called 'powers.' I __**control**__ them Goa'uld. If they leave this planet, they'll die, and their corpses will unleash death upon whoever took them from it. __**My**__ pets, my worshipers, are not to be messed with! Leave, Goa'uld, before I let the humans – less than my pets, they are, but still marginally useful – annihilate you and I eviscerate the bastard who dared tell __**out-worlders**__ of __**my**__ pets!"_

Apophis stood shocked, unable to move in the unrestrained anger and power in the Creature's voice. Only when beams of strange red light started darting around him did he move, **"Farewell then, Creature. You **_**will**_** be mine one day, willingly or not."**

_Too bad,_ Briar mused, _I wanted a bit of blood today._ She didn't notice that she had been having increasingly violent thoughts, ever since her removal from Broca.

Apophis and his guards shimmered away as Jeol appeared next to her.

"They were sent from whence they came. I am sorry, but the High Nox have declared you and your friends to be deported, and that you, and any human, alien, or hybrid associated with your world, may not come without their specific permission," Jeol told her, upset at loosing Briar's companionship and excellent questions. Briar shifted back to her Human form, looking quite downcast at the information.

"Maybe you could convince the High Nox to let one of us visit the other every once in a while? If not. . . I will miss you guys," she murmured quietly. She was quite surprised when Jeol enveloped her in a hug, "I will try my best. You have unique views and are very interesting. Know that even if I fail, you have the friendship of the Natural Nox, few as we are." Briar was shocked – and quite happy – to have new friends, maybe family. "You shall always be welcome in my family, Jeol. It extends to every Natural – or High – Nox. Happy life." Jeol smiled sadly as Briar faded from his view, closely followed by her hidden companions.

Briar cussed (she seemed to be doing that a lot lately) as Jeol faded. Well, he faded her, putting Briar, her friends, and all of their equipment next to the Stargate.

"What the hell just happened, Briar?" Jack asked, worry seeping into his anger. "Didn't Teal'c tell you?" A collective 'no' was her answer. "I told the Goa'uld that my Nundu was the source of the Nox's powers. If they left the planet, they would die and release a plague of death upon whoever removed them," Briar shrugged, chuckling slightly, "I also ordered him to not harm my 'pets' or the 'Humans-less-than-my-pets' – neither being meant, by the way – as I needed you Humans to take me to an unpopulated world called Pandora. Jeol offered me his friendship, but told me that no one from – or associated with – Earth could come here without invitation."

A long silence followed her explanation as they absorbed the information. "So . . . you insured that he would only go after your Nundu, chase after a possibly fictional planet, not to bug the Nox, solve aforementioned things with next to no violence, ensured _we _wouldn't get harmed, _and _got a friendship with the Natural Nox?" Daniel clarified faintly.

"And I told him if I ever saw 'Rey'auc' again I would eviscerate him for telling 'out-worlders' of my 'pets'," she added absently, nodding slightly. Teal'c gaped slightly at her, "Rey'auc? He was to be First Prime after I! Apophis _let_ you threaten his life?"

"Yep!" Briar chirped, smirking, "He also said I was to be 'his,' so I threatened to sic you guys on him." She giggled at their incredulous stares.

"Ah. . ." Teal'c murmured, getting his mask back on, "Threatening him with those he thinks less than himself to make him uneasy around them. Subtle, Briar." Jack laughed outright, "You managed to screw with him an' he pro'ly didn't even notice! Nice job, Briar!"

Sirius let out a bark-like laugh. Sam and Daniel both chuckled while Teal'c let a wry smirk creep onto his face. "We should probably get back, it's been nearly two days since we arrived. Can you dial us home, oh-Danny-boy?" Briar sing-songed happily. Daniel merely sputtered incredulously, so Briar ended up dialing home as she laughed at his consternation.

At least Sirius was accepted into the SG program. He went to replace Kawalski. After he had gotten infected no one else had wanted to replace him, leaving it at four men instead of five. SG-9 was still out of commission (OoC) as the entire team was dead.

"Briar?" She twisted around to look at Jack, who was currently sitting on his sofa. "Yes, Jack?" He pulled her into his side slightly awkward. "I . . . I thought you had _died_. Please, don't do that again." Briar stilled. It was rare for Jack to be so open. . .

"Wait here, 'kay?" She unthinkingly pecked his cheek before rushing off to rummage in her trunk. Jack watched, bewildered, as she dug deeper and deeper in various compartments, before actually falling _into_ one of them. A (very) muffled, and triumphant, 'AHA-HA!' was (just barely) heard from where she had fallen. Briar popped back up, carrying two leather necklaces. The pendants were of dark red or dark blue stones ((one was blood red, the other a dark blue)). She curled her hands around them, etching a phoenix on each of them with molecules of Naquadah, concentrating on making a slight telepathic connection between the two.

"Red or blue, Jack?" He paused, unsure, "Blue. . .? What will they do?" he asked as he slipped the inch and a half long oval around his neck. _**(AN: the pendants are 1 ½ inch long, ½ inch thick, ¾ inch wide on black leather.)**_

"Well they should help against harmful alterations of your mind and allow us to theoretically open a temporary telepathic link. It will also tell either of us if the other was hurt, under attack, alright, in need of assistance, or dead. It _may_ be able to locate its counterpart. Mine's a blood-stone while yours is a wave-stone, by the way. They're exceptionally rare, hence why I only just remembered them!" Briar chirped.

"You _forgot_ about exceptionally rare stones? How'd you manage _that_?" he asked incredulously. Briar shrugged, "Like you'd forget about anything else, I guess. I'm still unused to certain values of rare things. Hells, I'd give away a hundred thousand grand if I could. . . _speaking_ of which. . . Anyway, you should meet my creature-friends. They're really unique. There's Hedwig, Veritus, Shynra, Tetsu, Valdyr, Ailish, Elco, Tal, and Buki. . . Well there are more, but I think I should start off with the Quartet. . . Yeah, come here, Jack."

She giggled slightly, bringing (dragging) Jack over to her dark-wooded trunk. Briar shut the lid, pressing a series of runes in the lid before reopening it. A light breeze wafted up. "I made a stretch of land, filled with plants and small game, complete with artificial sun, moon, and stars. It's very complex, almost a complete dimension by itself. In you go!" Jack yelped as she suddenly shoved him in, jumping in after him.

Jack felt the air rushing by slow before he fell gently onto the ground. . . the soft _grassy_ ground. Complete with bugs, Jack noticed, as an ant crawled onto his hand. He looked around in awe. A soft, warm breeze rustled the leaves of a nearby fruit orchard.

"What'cha think?" Briar giggled from behind him. "How. . . wha . . . it's . . ." She full out laughed at him this time.

"I _told_ you, it's basically a pocket dimension, created by complex charms and such. The symbols decorating my trunk are imbued with energy so a certain combination decides which compartment or which dimensions – that I created – are accessed. This, for example, is where I grow my fruit, and where the Quartet live." Briar didn't let him answer – not that he could just yet – as she let out a piercing whistle.

Four creatures came into view: a black and dark blue Dragon-like creature with intelligent sea-green eyes; a light gray tiger with fierce amber eyes; a dark gray/blue eagle with comforting pink/red eyes; and last was a dark red and white-streaked wolf-like creature with a thin tail that had a poof-ball on it's end. The wolf-thing had odd fierce ice-blue eyes.

"This is the Quartet. The Wyvern is Elco, the tigress is Buki, the eagle is Ailish, and the last is a Woluf, Tal. Guys, this is Jack my. . ." she glanced at him but looked away before he could discern her question, "He's my teammate. He's also the one letting me stay with him."

Jack stepped up next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, "You don't want to tell them I'm your boyfriend?" he teased gently, whispering in her ear. **He's one of your mates? **A sharp, German accented voice asked. The voice seemed to originate from the . . . Wyvern. "Er. . . Briar? Did. . . Elco, just ask. . . what I _think_ he asked?" Jack questioned, just a _tidge_ weirded out. "What? You heard Elco? Hmm. . ." Briar trailed off, but snapped her fingers finally.

"It may be a side effect of the Wave-stone and Naquadah combination! Hum . . . I wonder what would happen if a celestial type was fused with Naquadah. . . need to ask Fangheart if his people could scrounge up some more Stones. . . I do love experiments. . . I remember that one time I nearly blew up the classroom," Briar giggled, remembering a very purple (and green-spotted) Severus attempting to throttle her. . . . which, of course led for them to be in a _very_ compromising position. Which, at the time, neither of them minded. She was able to reverse the green and purple-ness though! _**(AN: No, this will not be a Sev fic. **_**There will be the possibility for other romances, though. There was and will be other possible 'mates' for Briar. It's up to you guys if you really want her to stay **_**with**_** Jack.**_**)**_

So Jack, the Quartet, and Briar chatted for almost an hour before Buki inquired as to the _rest_ of Briar's Human friends – namely the Marauders. The young woman paled, jumping up, "Oh, Gods! How – is it possible to take a week or so off? Actually, come to think of it, how long _is_ it until our next mission?"

Jack blinked, thinking, "Actually, it's about a week and a half. Who are you visiting?" Briar smirked, "_We_, dear Jack, will visit a number of very important friends _**((that she somehow forgot about -sweatdrop-))**_. They need to know I'm alive, of course. Two, nearly three, years is quite a long time." Jack decided that he was _very _glad that Briar Potter-Lupin-Black was on his side. . . or was he on hers?

_**A/N: I'm sorry this took so long to upload. The next chapter is about 25+ notebook pages long (comparing to the 10 of this one), covering Briar's visits. I was trying to complete it before I uploaded this chapter. . . but it's still going on. She has a **_**lot**_** of friends. Anyway, it will take a while before the next is actually uploaded! But please, Review, give me some bloody feedback!**_

**So. . . You should have noticed the little note about the Mates. It was confusing, I understand. There are more compatible people, but at the moment Jack is the one she's chosen.**__**Remember that this is intended to be a multi-crossover fic, and will probably include multiple past relationships. It may eventually evolve into a three-pairing, maybe Briar and two other guys. Shoot me some ideas via PM, please, if you have any.**

**-15-05-12, K9**


End file.
